Thesis (D. Min.).--Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 204-216).

Thesis (D. Min.)--Trinity International University, 2002. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 236-242).

Thesis (M. S.)--Florida State University, 2005. / Advisor: Dr. Marcia Rosal, Florida State University, School of Visual Arts and Dance, Dept. of Art Education. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed Sept. 14, 2005). Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 95 pages. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (D. Min.)--Trinity International University, 2002. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 236-242).

Thesis (D. Min.)--Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, 2005. / Abstract and vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 141-151).

Thesis (D. Min.)--Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, 2005. / Abstract and vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 141-151).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Virginia, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 99-107). Also available online through Digital Dissertations.

Abstract The purpose of this study was to describe the family grief and recovery process through a qualitative phenomenological family therapy approach.The study included stories of 22 families and one focus group. Of the losses 14, were perinatal, 6 Sudden Infant Death Syndromes (SIDS) and 2 neonatal deaths. The analysed text was divided into 21 categories, which represent different aspects of the meaning systems of the families. All the families had traumatic symptoms in the beginning, and some mothers suffered from persistent posttraumatic symptoms for several months. Children processed their experiences in grief play and tried to restore their parents back into their roles. Grief was shared in extended families, especially religious families, where acute grief soon generated new meanings.The recovery process starts immediately after the loss, manifesting as thoughts of coping. Grief, trauma and recovery appear intertwined in the stories. Family grief is a many-faceted physical, psychological, spiritual and social process. It is paradoxical, and restorying and retelling are therefore important as a healing process. The main finding of this study is the intensive way the parents initially need to reprocess their attachment to the psychological remains of their baby in order to recover. Grieving thus involves deep attachment rather than detachment, Some families have phantom babies who continue to live psychologically and almost physically or little angels who comfort and escort the family. The parents have invested so much primeval energy in the baby who is no longer alive that they tend to re-create her/him in their minds psychologically or spiritually. Professional helpers still have too little knowledge of crisis intervention. The loss of a baby is an exceptional type of normal grief and the parents therefore have difficulties in getting the support they need. Family debriefing and follow-up are necessary.

Sometimes when a person who has been diagnosed with cancer finds out that his or her cancer returned and continuously has to go for surgeries, treatments, regular follow-ups, and continued overtime to deal with the same life-threatening illness, he or she can actually feel frozen due to feeling depressed and anxious in not knowing how to move forward with life. Dance is a metaphor used in this study to move forward. Psychotherapy can offer major benefits to help cancer patients cope with the depression, anxiety, stress, and other emotional reactions that often accompany a cancer diagnosis (Stuyck, 2008). Many studies have explored the benefit of psychotherapy for cancer patients, but little is known about the personal narratives of cancer patients who sought individual therapy to talk about their experience with cancer. The purpose of this study is to explore, through autoethnographic inquiry, what role dance plays in the process of seeking individual therapy. It also explores the impact of facing cultural biases that exist in the Haitian culture about mental health. Finally, this study explores what role psychotherapy played in my reflective therapeutic journal that I wrote while in therapy. This autoethnography was written from a first-person perspective, thus giving readers the chance to enter into the researcher’s world. This study brings a social constructionist and systemic understanding to the experience of being a Haitian Marriage and Family Therapist cancer patient who sought individual therapy and became transformed by accepting my therapist’s invitation to dance with cancer. Additionally, this study examines my unique position as a Marriage and Family Therapist to receive therapy.

A review of the research related to Medical Family Therapy demonstrates that the inclusion of marriage and family therapists as part of the healthcare team offers benefits such as decreased utilization of healthcare, decreased costs, increased positive outcomes for patients and healthcare systems. However, studies demonstrate the difficulty with communication between providers limiting access to marriage and family therapists. Results of this study identified benefits to working with medical family therapists including broadening the understanding and using a collaborative effort to help the patient improve and get better. Participants also identified barriers to collaboration such as the lack of knowledge of and access to MedFTs, their inclusion in the system, MDs finding value in the MedFT profession, and that the communication process is lacking. Further need for improved communication at the referral and follow-up stages in collaborative practices is shown. In order to move more toward collaborative practices, PCPs and MedFTs need to develop and disseminate training on treatment notes, communication, team meetings, and continuance of collaborative work with one another.